'Snapshots from Germany' on Serious Eats

When drinking in watering holes in the border area between Germany and Denmark you'll often see a tall jar glass filled with rust-colored pickled eggs submerged in a slightly muddy-looking liquid on the table. In Denmark these are called "Solæg" and supposedly originated from the region of Southern Jutland (Jutland being the Danish peninsula connected to Northern Germany). More

As the name indicates, the typical Leberwurst is a sausage that includes liver, usually pork. The actual liver content, however, will normally never exceed 25% with the remainder made up of minced pork cuts, speck, fat, seasoned with salt, pepper and other spices and herbs such as marjoram. More

Imbiss is a general German term for small food stand or street food shop, usually tiny and locally run (often a family operation). There are thousands of imbisses around Berlin, serving everything from the standard currywurst, pizza, or döner kebab to the more exotic such as Nepali vegetarian dishes, Russian red beat soups, Copenhagen-style hot dogs, and Korean food. More

Like Maultasche, Spätzle is a signature Swabian dish from Baden-Württemberg, arguably one of the most interesting culinary regions of Germany. Spätzle is essentially an egg noddle served either plain as a side dish or as a main course typically with cheese, onions and speck. More

Rotwurst, which translates as "red sausage," is one of many types of blutwurst (blood sausage) in Germany. It's made mostly from pork blood, rind, some liver, speck and grütze (groats) spiced with cloves, marjoram, thyme and cinnamon. The delicate taste might actually surprise you. There's a slight touch of metallic blood flavor, sure, but it's nicely complemented by the spices, especially the underlying cinnamon. More

For the hardcore Bavarian (Munich) locals, there are a number of rules on how to remove the sausage casing (it's never eaten). Some will argue that you should suck the meat out of the pork casing, and that "any other method would be sacrilegious." Removing the casing with a knife and fork is completely fine by me, as long as you remove the entire casing in one gentle, elegant motion. But this can only happen if the weißwurst has been properly heated, allowing the casing to be peeled off easily without disturbing the sausage texture. More

Flammkuchen directly translates as "flaming cake." But it's considered just as much as French (they call it tarte flambée) as it is German since this pizza-like dish is from the Alsace region of France around the upper Rhine river, which has shifted between German and French control for centuries. It traditionally comes in two styles: sweet with apples and savory with bacon. More

The most popular German bread must be the plain-looking and tasting Brötchen (white breadroll), eaten for breakfast with jam and for lunch with butter and slices of cheese or salami, or simply served beside your wurst (sausage). I always use three-day-old pretzel bread in my meatballs and for my knödle (German potato and bread dumpling). More

According to the European Association of Turkish Döner Producers, more than 100,000 tons of döner meat is annually consumed in Germany. This translates into two million döners sold and eaten every single day, surpassing all other German fast food dishes including the currywurst. In Berlin alone there are over 1,300 döner stands.More

This might look like an oversized ravioli, taste like ravioli, and it's even prepared and cooked like ravioli. But don't be fooled; this isn't ravioli, this isMaultasche (literally translated into Mouthbag). Maultasche is a distinct German dish typical of the southwestern region of Baden-Württemberg, known as Swabia, on the border of France and Switzerland. More

Head cheese, also known as aspic, is popular throughout Europe. Just to clear things up before we move any further: it does not actually contain any cheese. Head cheese belongs to a family of dishes where prime quality meats from the head of a pig or calf (seafood, lamb, and poultry can also be used) are preserved into a jelly made from cooled stock that's been turned into gelatin. More

Grünkohl mit Mettwurst is a classic German dish of cabbage and pork traditionally enjoyed during winter. Often found at Christmas markets and served with various kinds of sausages and pork cuts, it should always be accompanied by a healthy dose of alcoholic beverages. More